What once helped heat Scranton may now be seeping into the Lackawanna River.

The Department of Environmental Protection is investigating a “significant” petroleum-based spill in the river as fuel oil leaking from an old steam energy plant has covered plants along the shoreline for as far as 2 miles, according to an initial inspection by DEP.

“We’ve got quite an investigation on our hands,” DEP spokeswoman Colleen Connolly said. She said the fuel was traced to a former steam energy property. While she was not sure of the name of the company, the former Community Central Energy Corp. property on North Washington Avenue, is in the area.

An emergency response team was dispatched Saturday to the river near the Poplar Street bridge in Scranton, after a fisherman noticed discolored plants. Later Saturday, DEP workers determined the substance was fuel oil and tracked it to an abandoned above-ground tank at the former steam heat provider, Ms. Connolly said.

The fuel oil likely traveled underground and entered the river from a large drainage pipe underneath the bridge, Ms. Connolly said. Crews believe they have contained any further leaking and have placed containment booms in the river, she said.

Community Central Energy Corp., which is about five blocks from the river, shut down in 2006 after heating most of the buildings in downtown Scranton with steam for 130 years. The DEP is now trying to determine who owns the old energy company’s property and assess how much fuel oil spilled into the river.

“We have a lot of questions,” Ms. Connolly said.

At the bridge Saturday night, where the effects of the spill begin, plants were discolored several feet above the water level, which was higher earlier in the week. Plants are discolored all the way to the South Side Sports Complex — a distance of almost 2 miles, Charlie Charlesworth of Trout Unlimited said.

No warnings have been issued about fishing or being in the river, but people should try to stay away from the affected shoreline, Ms. Connolly said.

We welcome user discussion on our site, under the following guidelines:

To comment you must first create a profile and sign-in with a verified DISQUS account or social network ID. Sign up here.

Comments in violation of the rules will be denied, and repeat violators will be banned. Please help police the community by flagging offensive comments for our moderators to review. By posting a comment, you agree to our full terms and conditions. Click here to read terms and conditions.

Think you have the cutest pet in NEPA? Share a photo of your furry companion and you could win prizes from our sponsors! Deadline to submit an entry is March 19, and voting will take place from March 20-March 31.